Scheduled for Research Consortium Poster Social: Representative Research in HPERD, Wednesday, March 14, 2007, 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM, Convention Center: Exhibit Hall Poster Area I


The Seven Movements in Dancing Viewed Through Laban Movement Analysis

Billie Lepczyk, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA

Jean Georges Noverre is the dancer and ballet master who wrote Lettres sur la danse et les ballets in 1760 which revolutionized ballet. His theories are with us today. Noverre analyzed ballet movement into seven basic categories. These are known as the seven movements in dancing. These are plier (to bend), etendre (to stretch), relever (to rise), sauter (to jump), tourner (to turn), glisser (to glide), and elancer (to dart). Viewing the seven movements of dancing through Laban Movement Analysis, five of the categories identify forms or structures, and two identify effort qualities. The five movements that address forms are basic to human movement and appear in most dance styles. These are plier, etendre, relever, sauter, and tourner. Glisser and elancer are movement qualities composed of three effort qualities, full effort actions. Glisser (to glide) is composed of direct/sustained/light effort and elancer (to dart) is composed of direct/quick/light effort. The difference is in the time factor, sustained effort and quick effort. Glisser and elancer are qualities embedded in ballet technique. Starting with the barre, the feet are trained to slide into and out of closed positions in a direct/light effort quality in varying tempi. This sliding technique is the impetus for the arc-like leg gestures in the terre a terre, adagio, allegro, and grand allegro movements of ballet. The gliding movement quality manifests in adagio and in the soaring leaps of grand allegro. The darting quality is explicit in allegro and grand allegro movement. Gliding and darting qualities symbolize the dynamic image of ballet. In summary, plier, etendre, relever, sauter, and tourner identify forms and are common to basic human movement and most dance styles; whereas, glisser and elancer are salient effort qualities specific to ballet style.


Keyword(s): creative movement, dance, physical education PK-12

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